AB1299 THE INCIDENCE OF POST-COVID SYNDROME IN PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATIC DISEASES
Authors: N. Тileubek, N. Shamsutdinova, V. Mukhamadieva, D. Abdulganieva, R. Abdrakipov, S. Lapshina
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (2023)

<h3>Background</h3> Post-COVID Syndrome occurs in people after coronavirus infection with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection or in people with suspected coronavirus infection, usually 3 months after the onset of COVID-19, with symptoms that last at least 2 months and cannot be explained by an alternative diagnosis. Although post-COVID manifestations have been previously studied in the general population, they have not been studied in a specific population of patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases. The list of post-covid syndromes includes arthralgia, arthritis, myalgia, vasculitis with damage to vessels of various sizes, antiphospholipid syndrome, as well as a number of immunological markers that are characteristic of a wide range of rheumatic diseases [1] <h3>Objectives</h3> to study the incidence of post-COVID syndrome in patients with rheumatic diseases (RD). <h3>Methods</h3> From March 2020 to September 2022, 271 patients with RD who had a novel coronavirus infection (NCI) with a confirmed SARS-CoV-2 PCR result and/or X-ray computed tomography (CT) of the lungs were under observation. Among the patients, 68 (25%) were males, 203 (75%) were females. The median age was 56 [46.65] years. The average duration of RD at the time of NCI was 10.9 [5.15] years. The distribution of patients was as follows: rheumatoid arthritis (RA) - 186 people (68.6%), ankylosing spondylitis (AS) - 46 people (16.9%), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) - 38 people (14%). The results of clinical and laboratory examinations for RD were assessed before the NCI and 3 and 6 months after the NCI. A survey of patients was conducted as part of an in-depth medical examination 3 and 6 months after undergoing NCI for the presence of post-COVID manifestations. <h3>Results</h3> 90.4% of patients noted the persistence or appearance of symptoms after undergoing NCI, and all of them had a combination of at least 3 different groups of symptoms. The most common increase/appearance of pain in the joints was 91.1%. Among the respondents, the second symptom in terms of frequency of occurrence, in 52.9% of cases, were asthenic manifestations in the form of the appearance and intensification of fatigue, muscle pain, headaches. A decrease in working capacity and quality of life was noted by 52.9%. Complaints about a significant increase in dyspnea and a decrease in exercise tolerance were noted by 35.3% of the respondents, while there was no connection with the severity of NCI, and half of the patients had a mild course of NCI. Increased chest pain and/ or palpitations - in 23.5% of people. Half of the patients noticed hair loss and skin rash at 3-6 months after NCI: significant 35.2%, insignificant 20.5%. A slight persistence of elevated temperature since recovery from NCI was recorded in 17.6% of patients. RD stage of remission before NCI was in 9 (3.3%), low degree of activity 58 (21.4%), moderate degree of activity 140 (51.6%), high degree of activity 21 (7.7%), 43 (15.8%) people - no data. Moderate and high degrees of RD activity before NCI influenced the increase in joint pain (p&lt;0.023), unstable course of diabetes mellitus (p&lt;0.032) by 3 after recovery. <h3>Conclusion</h3> In patients with RD, post-covid manifestations persist, primarily due to articular (91.1%) and general constitutional symptoms (85.3%) from 3 to 6 months after undergoing NCI. Moderate and high degrees of RD activity before NCI significantly affect the severity of the articular syndrome and the unstable course of diabetes mellitus. Therapy for post-COVID syndrome in patients with rheumatological diseases should be personalized and determined by the characteristics of this patient's condition. <h3>Reference</h3> [1]Lapostolle F., Schneider E., Vianu I., Dollet G., Roche B., Berdah J., Michel J., Goix L., Chanzy E., Petrovic T., Adnet F. Clinical features of 1487 COVID-19 patients with outpatient management in the Greater Paris: the COVID-call study// Intern. Emerg. Med. 2020. Vol. 15 (5). P. 813–817. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s11739-020-02379-z <h3>Acknowledgements:</h3> NIL. <h3>Disclosure of Interests</h3> None Declared.